The presently disclosed subject matter relates generally to mailers for shipping objects, and more particularly to mailers comprising an outer pouch and an inner inflatable liner and an inflation pathway through which a portion of gas can be introduced into said inflatable liner.
Consumers frequently purchase goods from mail order or internet retailers. According to the Census Bureau of the U.S. Department of Commerce, retail e-commerce sales for 2006 reached 107 billion dollars in the U.S. alone, the highest total ever. As a result, millions of packages are being shipped each day. Many of these packages include small items such as pharmaceuticals, books, medical supplies, electronic parts, and the like. These items are normally packaged in small containers, such as boxes or envelopes. To protect the items during shipment, they are typically packaged with some form of protective dunnage that can be wrapped around the item or stuffed into the container to prevent movement of the item and to protect against shock.
One common packaging method uses corrugated boxes to hold and ship items. The spaces between the items and the inside walls of the box are filled with void-filling dunnage, such as foam peanuts, air cellular cushioning materials, crumpled or shredded paper, and/or other air-filled packaging materials. Typically, the corrugated boxes are supplied to the shipper in a collapsed condition to occupy less space. Each box must then be assembled and taped before use by the shipper, resulting in additional labor costs.
The void-filling dunnage must also be delivered to the shipper. The shipper normally warehouses a supply of dunnage for future use. Conventional dunnage materials, such as air cellular material or foam peanuts, are composed primarily of air. Shipping costs associated with these packaging materials are generally based on volume rather than weight, resulting in increased transportation costs. Paper dunnage is more economical to ship, but requires additional labor to convert to usable dunnage. Thus, void-filling materials can increase the costs associated with shipping items.
Another type of common shipping method includes the use of a padded mailer. Padded mailers are generally shipping envelopes that have padded walls to protect the contents of the mailer. Some padded mailers are constructed from a double wall paper envelope with paper dunnage between the walls. Another type of mailer contains air cellular material lining the inside surfaces of the envelope. These envelopes can be made of paper or plastic such as Tyvek® (available from E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company, Wilmington, Del., United States of America). Similar to foam peanuts and air cellular materials, these padded mailers are typically comprised mostly of air. They are normally expensive to deliver to the shipper, and require a large storage space. The padded mailers are typically limited to relatively thin padding so that their size is both practical and economic. As a result, the protective capabilities of these padded envelopes can be limited.
In addition, a further type of common shipping method includes the use of an Xpander Pak®. The Xpander Pak® shipper contains thick foam walls that are compressed and vacuum sealed on each side. The foam walls are positioned inside of a durable film pouch such that the foam surrounds the product to be packaged. After the package is sealed, each side of the pouch is punctured to release the vacuum and allow the foam walls to expand around the packaged product. However, the Xpander Pak® is costly to manufacture compared to other shipping methods commonly used in the art.
Additional methods of providing protective dunnage include the use of polyurethane foam cushions and air cushions that are prepared on-site. These methods typically require the use of more expensive equipment and additional space to position the equipment near the point of packaging.
Thus, there exists a need for providing a mailer for the shipment of items that requires less storage space and more economical than those mailers currently used in the art. In addition, there exists a need for a system that enables a shorter cycle time between inflation and sealing compared to other mailer systems currently used in the art. Further, there exists a need in the art for simpler and lower cost equipment for producing a mailer as compared to equipment currently used. There also exists a need for a mailer that does not require pre-filling, which can be cumbersome and time-consuming.